PUBLICATION

A nonsense mutation in zebrafish gata1 causes the bloodless phenotype in vlad tepes

Authors
Lyons, S.E., Lawson, N.D., Lei, L., Bennett, P.E., Weinstein, B.M., and Liu, P.P.
ID
ZDB-PUB-020429-4
Date
2002
Source
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America   99(8): 5454-5459 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Bennett, Jr., Paul, Lawson, Nathan, Liu, Pu Paul, Lyons, Susan, Weinstein, Brant M.
Keywords
none
MeSH Terms
  • 3T3 Cells
  • Alleles
  • Animals
  • Centromere
  • Codon, Nonsense
  • DNA/metabolism
  • DNA, Complementary/metabolism
  • DNA-Binding Proteins/metabolism*
  • Erythroid-Specific DNA-Binding Factors
  • GATA1 Transcription Factor
  • Genetic Linkage
  • Genotype
  • Homozygote
  • Humans
  • In Situ Hybridization
  • Mice
  • Mutation
  • Phenotype
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Protein Binding
  • Transcription Factors/metabolism*
  • Transcriptional Activation
  • Zebrafish
  • Zebrafish Proteins
PubMed
11960002 Full text @ Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA
Abstract
Vlad tepes (vlt(m651)) is one of only five "bloodless" zebrafishmutants isolated through large-scale chemical mutagenesis screening. It is characterized by a severe reduction in blood cell progenitors and few or no blood cells at the onset of circulation. We now report characterization of the mutant phenotype and the identification of the gene mutated in vlt(m651). Embryos homozygous for the vlt(m651) mutation had normal expression of hematopoietic stem cell markers through 24 h postfertilization, as well as normal expression of myeloid and lymphoid markers. Analysis of erythroid development revealed variable expression of erythroid markers. Through positional and candidate gene cloning approaches we identified a nonsense mutation in the gata1 gene, 1015C --> T (Arg-339 --> Stop), in vlt(m651). The nonsense mutation was located C-terminal to the two zinc fingers and resulted in a truncated protein that was unable to bind DNA or mediate GATA-specific transactivation. A BAC clone containing the zebrafishgata1 gene was able to rescue the bloodless phenotype in vlt(m651). These results show that the vlt(m651) mutation is a previously uncharacterized gata1 allele in the zebrafish. The vlt(m651) mutation sheds new light on Gata1 structure and function in vivo, demonstrates that Gata1 plays an essential role in zebrafish hematopoiesis with significant conservation of function between mammals and zebrafish, and offers a powerful tool for future studies of the hematopoietic pathway.
Genes / Markers
Figures
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Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping